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Remington and Russell

The Lost-Wax Process During the Lifetimes of Frederic Remington and Charles M. Russell

The lost-wax process, the preferred method for bronze casting during the lifetimes of Frederic Remington and Charles M. Russell, offered far greater detail and complexity than the earlier sand-cast method. As its name implies, the lost-wax process involves a step that produces, from a plaster cast, a wax replica of the artist’s three-dimensional creation. This wax model can then be retooled by the artist, details can be added, and components changed. The lost-wax process is itself virtually a lost method today, having been replaced by easier, more streamlined, and less time-consuming processes.